A Defined Body of Knowledge

In particular, teaching seems to lag behind professions such as law and medicine in four important areas: (1) a defined body of knowledge and skills beyond that grasped by laypeople, (2) control over licensing standards and/or entry requirements, (3) autonomy in making decisions about selected work spheres, and (4) high prestige and economic standing. In the following sections, we explore these four aspects of teaching.

2-1a A Defined Body of Knowledge

All professions have a monopoly on certain knowledge that separates their members from the general public and allows them to exercise control over the vocation. Members of the profession establish their expertise by mastering this defined body of knowledge, and they protect the public from untrained amateurs by denying membership to those who have not mastered it. In the past, it was difficult to argue that “education” or “teaching” had established an agreed-upon, specialized body of knowledge.3 Nor has teaching been guided by the extensive rules of procedure and established methodologies found in professions such as medicine or engineering. As a result, too many people, especially the public and politicians, talk about education as if they were experts—the cause of many conflicting and sometimes negative conversations. Some detractors even claim that teaching skills are innate rather than learned.4

What some contend is a still developing body of knowledge allows teachereducation course content to vary from state to state and even among teacher-training institutions. Today, teacher preparation usually consists of three major components: (1) liberal (or general) education, (2) specialized subject-field education—the student’s major or minor, and (3) professional education. Almost all educators agree that preparing good teachers rests on these three components. Arguments arise, however, over the relative emphasis that each component should receive. How much course work, for example, should the education program require from liberal-education courses versus specialized subject field courses and professional education courses? Viewpoints also differ concerning the extent to which clinical experience, which involves actual practice in school settings, should be incorporated in professional education programs. Thus, teacher-education programs may differ among various colleges and universities.5

In the 1960s, James Koerner and James Bryant Conant described the issue in highly critical books, and their criticism from several decades ago can still be heard today. Koerner argued that by requiring too many education courses—as many as sixty hours at some teacher colleges—and by making these courses too “soft,” colleges of education were producing teachers versed in pedagogy at the expense of academic content.6 In 2002, then-Secretary of Education Rod Paige echoed this criticism and called for a de-emphasis on education course work in the preparation of teachers. Critics today

3John Loughran, “Is Teaching a Discipline?” Teacher and Teaching: Theory and Practice (April 2009), pp. 189–203; and Darrel Drury, “The Professionalization of Teaching—What NEA Surveys Tell Us about a Common Knowledge Base,” Education Week (June 30, 2011). 4Valeri R. Helterbran, “Professionalism: Teachers Taking the Reins,” Clearing House (January 2008), pp. 123–127; F. Murray, “The Role of Teacher Education Courses in Teaching by Second Nature,” in M. Cochran-Smith, S. Feiman-Nemser, and J. McIntyre, eds. Handbook of Research on Teacher Education, 3rd ed. (New York: Routledge/Taylor and Francis, 2008), pp. 1228–1246; and Trip Gabriel, “Teachers Wonder, Why the Heapings of Scorn?” New York Times, March 3, 2011, p. A1. 5Arthur Levine, “Are Schools of Education in Urgent Need of Reform?” Trusteeship (January 2007), p. 40; and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher, Education, “Transforming Teacher Education through Clinical Practice: A National Strategy to Prepare Effective Teachers,” Report of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Clinical Preparation and Partnerships for Improved Student Learning, National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (November 1, 2010): ERIC, EBSCOhost (accessed September 23, 2011). 6James D. Koerner, The Miseducation of American Teachers (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1963); James Bryant Conant, The Education of American Teachers (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1963); and George Will, “Ed Schools vs. Education,” Newsweek, January 16, 2006.